RWBY In Your Bed
by Mr IDONTKNOWWHATIMDOING
Summary: You're a loser. Sorry. But will the 4 anime girls in your bed change that?
1. Heartbreak and Explosive Pancakes

RWBY In Your Room.  
The atmosphere of the cafe is light, jubilant. Outside the tall panes of glass, the street is dark and patters of pain fall.  
Your eyes rove in front of you. A man, hunches forward in his seat, dejectedly stirring his Caramel Cocoa Cluster Frappuccino Blended Coffee with a wooden stick.  
His face should be clean, but a pointy beard sits there now. A depressingly brown overcoat replaces the usual hoodie, and your friend is unrecognisable.  
"Buddy, you know you don't actually need to stir a frappuccino, yeah?"  
Buddy stops stirring, eyes still fixed down, then stirs again in the opposite direction. He hasn't taken a single sip.  
"Doesn't matter. Nothing does anymore."  
The mocha drizzle is mixed with the cream now. The nuts have sunk to the bottom of the cup. 'It's ruined,' you decide.  
"It's got 450 calories Buddy." You glare at him. "I can see your love handles."  
"How could she do this to me." Buddy's voice is trembling. "We loved each other."  
The hurt he feels, you can feel it too. Well, sort of. It's a mutual understanding. You can still see the bruises on his knuckles where he beat up his girlfriend's other lover. It's not that you know how it feels, to walk into your bedroom only to see your girlfriend hungrily humping someone else, but you also feel you should help your only friend.  
"I'm sorry." you mutter, cause you really are. "Some women really are just monsters."  
Buddy says nothing. He doesn't even look up. What else does he want you to say?  
"You don't know how I feel." he mutters bitterly.  
The rain patters more heatedly now, rapping on the sides of the window. You sigh and look at the shell of a man in front of you. Life sucks. I wish I could go somewhere else. Oh yeah? Like what?

-

Team RWBY was in a spot of bother. Yang Xiao Long skimmed her forefinger through the sticky honey, raising a finger to her mouth and sucking on it thoughtfully.

Ruby watched urgently, then asked through clenched teeth. "How is it?"

Weiss and Blake are surveying the scene with intensity too, eyes glued on her. Yang circled her finger inside, head cocked, eyes gazing up thoughtfully, enjoying the attention. Then she pulled her finger out with a loud slurp and slammed it down on the surface of the pancake.

'It's PERFECT.'

'Really?' Ruby squealed.

'Perfection itself.' Yang nodded proudly.

'Ah, every sister needs this moment of pride!' She strikes a theatrical pose.

'I guess that cook book i gave you helped, huh?' Blake said kindly.

'Totally! Thanks so much Blake!'

'Nora's had it.' Weiss smiled, confidently. 'She can't hold a candle to our pancakes.'

The rest of the team bobbled their heads in aplomb.  
"Good job, Ruby. You're becoming more of a team leader every day." Weiss went over to pick up the plates of pancakes. "I'd say the competition's in the bag."  
"Oh no no, I'll clean them up." She said, when Blake walked over in an effort to help.  
With that, she disappeared out of the team room.  
"Say sis, what did you add in the honey? It's amazingly sweet." Yang asked, incredulously.  
"I really shouldn't say…" Ruby giggled, wobbly from the praise. She turned to look at Blake, looking for permission to share the secrets of the cook book.  
"Go ahead, be my guest."  
"Welllll, I added the usual stuff, yknow, but the cookbook also recommended a pot of dragontail dust."  
"A pot! Damn." Yang whispered in awe.

A sort of impressed silence spreads, before Yang gives a suppressed little cough. Blake's ears twitch, indicating something is confusing her.

"Did you say a pot of dragontail?"

Weiss strides back in, eyebrows furrowed. "Did someone say something about dragontail?"

Yang coughs again, louder.

"Yup, Weiss, i added a pot to the pancake sauce. That's why it tastes so good!"  
"A pot?" Weiss's expression is suddenly aghast.

"Didn't they say a teaspoon, Ruby?" Blake murmurs hurriedly.

Yang watches the string of nervous questions blankly, wincing. Her stomach gurgles.  
"It isn't _that_ important." Ruby blushes furiously.

"That much dragondust reacts explosively with stomach fluids." Weiss informs.  
"Holy fu-" Yang explodes. In fact, the entire left wing of the school blows. As it turns out, Yang had a lot of gastric acid in her that day. Poor Ruby.  
The whole cooking debacle sort of just, blew up in her face.  
_

'Go All The Way' by Raspberries pounds in your ear.

Your eyes are shut.

You drum your fingers on the block of assignments on your desk. Your head bobs to the beat, loving your new headphones.

'Please go awayyy~' the lyrics sing passionately.

'Just hold me close, don't ever let me go~'

'Y/N!'

'Woo hoo~'

'Y/N!'

You open your eyes and look up to see your boss wave a clipboard of papers at your nose feverishly.

'Yep Jen?' You.

Your boss sighs and pushes the clipboard onto the stack of assignments.

'What the-? What's this?' You stutter, trying to sound indignant.

'Friday's hand-ins.' Jen (your boss) pauses. 'Means you hand it in on Friday. To me.'

'I've got a lot to do Jen, gimme a break? Please?'

She gives you a wry smiles and turns to walk away, hazel eyes lingering a bit. She looks beautiful today in her sunny dress, long brown hair tied into a neat bun. But you don't bother to say anything. She probably likes you, but you both know the chemistry isn't there. In a nut shell, relationships aren't your cup of tea.

Groaning, you pocket your phone, headphones, laptop and the ton of work.  
_

Your car bumbles along the open road, kicking up a cloud of orange dust behind it. Inside, you have an episode of the RoosterTeeth podcast playing.

It's the voice actors of RWBY.

Barbara Dunkelman warbles a joke through the speaker.

Lindsay bubbles and laughs.

Team RWBY contains all of your waifus. They're wonderful, and beautiful, and funny, and so far away.

You look at the screen of your phone, then at the stack of papers in the passenger seat, then back at the podcast.

Your apartment rises out of the horizon.

Grabbing your phone, scrolling through, you put on your favourite song.

You manage a smile.

You sit in your room. You're alone.

Around the walls are pasted posters of your beloved anime and movies, accompanied by some figures from Cowboy Bebop, Sword Art Online, and mostly, RWBY.

They gleam in frozen, sculpted cheeriness, in the dark, cramped room.

You feel the pit of your stomach churn. At least they accept you. It doesn't matter if most people don't.  
The cheap bed creaks as you lie down, not even undressing-you don't care anymore-and you close your eyes, trying to sleep.  
This life sucks, big time. People just grow older and accept their reality. The anime figures smile back at you. _They've got it easy. Trade?_  
Tossing and turning, itches and urges keep you from unconsciousness. Flashes of images and shuddering light. Jen materialises in front of you, inches from your face. Her breath is warm and heated, lips pursed and slightly open, while her eyes are nervous, wide, wondering what move you'll make next. Then she's sitting on a pile of papers, like a queen on a throne. It swirls like a black hole, next you're old. A faceless man jeers. 'You're alone. You're worthless.'  
The nerves in your body jolt, and the man melts into a feminine figure, Ruby Rose from RWBY, sprawled on your chest, eyes gently closed, mouth open, a quiet snore. The room is dark, but sun light through the open door slowly reveals the rest of team RWBY on your bed, all asleep and inches from your rigid form.  
You smile and trace a finger down Ruby's face. This isn't the first time you've dreamt about this.  
Otaku, they called you. Loser, they called you. At least you weren't the one getting your heart broken.  
She wrinkles her nose slightly, eyebrows furrowing. Turning, she digs her head in your chest, and you smell the scent of flowers and summer from her hair. She's still sleeping.  
You brush your hand across her jawline. Your eyes trace around the room, watching the other members of RWBY. This obviously feels extremely wrong. Even in a dream, you feel sick, vision glued to Ruby's curves, contours and soft skin.  
But maybe, maybe this isn't a dream. It doesn't feel like one. Too real, you can feel her mushy skin under your hands.  
Blake snores in the back, gently.  
 _Briiiiiing_

Your phone rings in your pocket, loud and clear. Your brain goes to overdrive, taking it out and jabbing at the screen.  
 _Briiiiiiiiiiiing  
_ "Fucking Iphone." You growl, and shut it off.  
"Mmmh."  
Ruby's face twitches, movement behind the eyelid.  
"Oh fuck." You whimper.  
Her mouth hangs open, then closes, licking her lips. Then her eyes slide open lazily. The grey irises stare into your soul.  
This definitely isn't a dream.  
"AHHH!" Ruby pulls away, trips, slams into your bedroom wall. Her yell rouses the others, who grapple for their weapons, but realise that they aren't there. Instead, they settle on kicking your shit.  
Weiss chops your throat, you gargle and try to stand on the bed, but Yang's fist pummels your gut, and Blake sweeps her leg, tripping you.  
You hop around in muted pain, and fall on the cold floor.  
"Who are you?" Ruby gasps, still planted on the wall.  
"I'm just some guy! Why are you in my house?"  
"This is your house?" Blake cried, spinning round hysterically.  
"Where the hell-?" Yang yelped, eyes wide.  
"Who are you?!" Weiss yells  
"None of your business!" You hiss. "What are you guys doing in my bed?"  
"Like we're supposed to know!" Weiss retorts from her scarlet face.  
"Weren't we eating pancakes just like, 10 seconds ago?" Ruby squeals.  
"Yeah, why are we in some guy's trashy room now?" Blake yells back.  
"Did you just say trashy?" You yell.  
"Didn't I explode?" Yang screams.  
"Only because Ruby added too much dragondust!" Weiss says accusingly.  
"Only cause Blake's book said so!"  
"It said a teaspoon!"  
"I told you her books are utter filth!"  
"People, can we focus on the creep on the floor?" Weiss shrieks.  
"Can we not?" Yang says with her tongue between her teeth.  
"What's going on?!" You scream.  
"We ate explosive pancakes, died, and I think this is heaven!" Ruby wails.  
"Kill me." Blake moans.  
"Guys listen, I just woke up and saw you here! I have no part in either explosive pancakes or bringing you here!"  
Team RWBY stops and stares and you.  
"Let me help you guys out." You say, breathing deeply.  
"Some heaven this is." You hear Yang's voice behind Weiss and Blake.  
"Um….guys…?" Ruby's voice can be heard too.  
" _What,_ Ruby?" Blake says agitatedly.  
"Why does everything look…. _different?"_ She's right. Their clothes, bodies, everything really, still looks like it's rendered in Poser. Toon-shaded. But your room, your world is well, realistic.  
You slowly rise up to your feet and grit your teeth.  
"You guys have a lot to catch up on."


	2. Runaways And Elton John

RWBY In Your Bed

Weiss watches a glass cup of milk. It's cold. Droplets of water slide down it's side slowly, collecting at the base, on the dining table.  
Blake stands out at your balcony. The sun is falling. Darkness swarms around it's cloudy glow, but she's never seen anything like it before.  
Yang is probing your wardrobe, peeling out old blazers and bellbottoms with an array of expressions. She's never felt fabric like this, fabric so rough, nothing like anything she ever wore.

And Ruby watches you.  
You're breathing - hard. Sweeping through your fridge, you push through bottles of beer and last night's Chinese takeout.  
Obviously, you weren't prepared for this. But also obviously, they were hungry. They told you quite clearly 5 minutes ago.  
"Where are we?" Weiss had glowered. She still hadn't got over her initial suspicion. Obviously.  
"I told you, my room. In my house."  
"Who are you?" Weiss pressed.

"My name is Y/N. Hello."  
Weiss pauses and does a quick, stern analysis. She isn't sure if that last 'hello' was a mock of some kind. To be fair, you weren't sure either.  
"We've got a lot to discuss, but can we get out of the room first?" This time you had to squint to discern an expression from any of them. The lights are still off.  
They nod, say 'yes' awkwardly, fumbling out to the living room.  
You're supernaturally aware of everything now. How silly your face must look, how awkward you are, the way their clothes stick to Team RWBY's bodies. "Anybody want something to eat?" You clap your hands together, trying to keep your eyes up.  
Again, they nod, and say 'yes' quietly.  
Yang shoots you a piercing look, maybe to see the colour of your soul, search for sin. Why is she judging? The clothes you have on are fine. What did you do wrong?  
RWBY stands back, like there's a physical orb of 'nope' around you.  
"So uh, Y/N…" Ruby murmurs.  
"Yep?"

"Whaat kind of food do you have? Like noodles, orr cookies? Waffles?"  
"Not even funny." Yang grunts.  
"There's some milk on the table." You point dejectedly.  
"It doesn't even look like milk." Weiss mutters, and you wonder if she meant you to hear it.  
But then again, it wouldn't be fair to judge. For you, it's 4 anime girls in your house, as if it's a bad thing. For them, it's a whole new world, and being stuck with you.  
Thus, you pull out the Chinese takeout, feeling your hand beginning to numb from the cold soup, thinking, 'Christ that's disgusting.'  
"I've got some wanton noodles." You offer innocently.

"So you don't really know why you're here?"  
You're all sitting at the dinner table, you trying to make sense of the situation, them, not touching the cold wanton.  
"No, we exploded. And now we're here." Blake says.  
That's helpful. Oh wait, it isn't.  
"Maybe we need to kill ourselves in this world to go back." Yang chirps. "Would you stab me?" She says sweetly to you.  
"I don't know much but I don't think that's how it works." Ruby says nervously.  
"Are you suree?" Yang smiles.  
"Be serious please Yang." Weiss chides.  
"Well, why don't we go out to look for more clues." Blake suggests quietly.  
Wait a second, that can't be good.  
"Well that would be helpful." Weiss bobs her head. Ruby scratches her chin. It's instinctive, you swirl around and blurt -  
"You can't!"  
Blake arches an eyebrow. It was a few octaves louder than you meant, whoops?  
You don't usually like to get involved in people's business, or speak up, but this was completely different, objectively. What if they met a guy who was kinder to them, more attractive than you? They'd forget you, and you'd go back to your normal, pointless existence. Was your contribution to their lives going to be Chinese takeout and awkward conversations? You're a character in their newest episode, and you're going to follow the script.  
"Cause, cause, my people - the people in my world - they'll freak, alright? Seriously. They're all wild animals, it's a full-on dystopia out there."  
Blake's face is unreadable.

"Look, I'll help you out. You can't wear those clothes. Not out there. I can buy you some normal clothes, to hide your skin. Everyone out there looks like me. And, and, if they see you - wearing that? They're going to tear you apart, like savage animals."  
"Alright. You're the good guy. Everyone else is evil." Ruby nods slowly, and apparently un-ironically. "Help us out."  
"Ok. Thanks. Now stay here. I'm going to go buy some clothes for you guys."  
Your mind is rushing, your heart desperately hoping it doesn't all to shit.  
"Just stay." You repeat, holding out your arms, before hastily grabbing your keys, rushing out the front door.

Your feet stamp down the dusty stairs, past your landlord Mr King, the joyless asshat with a stupid black wig. If he ever found out about the girls, well, you wouldn't even want to think about that.  
You walk out of your apartment block.  
Soon car horns blare in your ear as you stop and start across the street.  
You haven't really taken notice of things like you're doing right now. The impossibility of your situation is getting you to wonder about the other mysteries of life. Isn't it crazy how humans came to be? From apes? Jesus?  
You're across the street, and now pushing the glass door to a shop jammed in between the pizza and guns place.  
"Welcome to Lucas's video game emporium. How may I be of service today?" The man behind the counter is thin, like a mop, with a bush of long, gangly blonde hair that complimented his light blue eyes, though not his red Hawaiian shirt. He says that phrase with relish, and his face breaks into a smile at the sight of you.  
"Hey Lucas." That's all you decide to say. For now. "Have you caught the latest RWBY episode?" You say, trying to be as flippant as possible.  
"RWBY?" He says incredulously. "You swore you would stop watching after Cinder got axed off." He stops and scratches his sideburns. "Or have you changed your mind?"  
Bummer. You did promise that. A flashing memory of a night out with Lucas, complaining about the recent seasons.  
"Besides, we haven't talked about RWBY in ages." He shakes his head, and you watch his hair swish.  
"Lucas." You say. He doesn't hear, he's talking about something else. It doesn't register with you. "Lucas. LUCAS."  
He pauses, his eyes swing to you. "What, dude?"  
"Got any donations in the back? Clothes? For teenagers?"  
"Yeah."  
"Can I have some?"  
"No." Lucas blurts, and frowns, as if you suggested if you could sleep with his girlfriend. Jokes aside, he doesn't have one. He's been a nut for as long as you've known him, sharing his concern to animal rights, women's pay, and most recently, stealing clothes off racks to mail to kids in Uzbekistan. Actually, he once robbed the local grocery of all it's plastic soda containers, and in protest built a hut, sitting inside it for 9 hours straight. The headline as you remember it, read "LOCAL BERK STEALS 1076 CANS, BUILDS ABSTRACT ART PIECE. FIND OUT MORE."  
He turns 27 this December.

"Besides," he says plainly, "What the hell would you use them for? Do you and Jen have a kid?"  
"No. She's not into me."  
"If she was anymore into you I'd have to pull her out using a grappling hook."  
"Look, I'm serious. No, she's not, and I need those clothes. Please?"  
"Alright, alright." He sighs in defeat but smiles, and beckons you to come behind the counter. "They're out back."

Ruby and her team stamp down the dusty stairs. It's loud and creaky, basically awful in every way.  
What else would they expect from the house of that creep, who was obviously trying to trap them.  
They reach the bottom, and skid on the floor.  
Weiss squeaks a bit, her heels struggle to grip onto anything.  
"What the hell? Who tiles these things?"  
Not far away, the door is wooden and glass, bright light shining through.  
"Come on guys, we have to push through!" Ruby stumbles forward, slips, and lunges to the door. Her knee hits the stone and pain bolts up her thigh.  
Like a snowball, the whole team skids and crashes into each other, falling through the door.  
"Holy….bananas." Yang breathes.  
A street expands, brick buildings on all sides. Cars and people bustle around, but no, they're not even cars and people! They look different.  
Suddenly, a yell. RWBY swept around to see a man growling, shaking his fist at them while his fake black wig wiggled sensually atop his head.  
Their boots scramble and squeak as they power run through the apartment door, the landlord's hollers still chasing their asses.  
"They're not tenants!" He yells at the neighbours coming down the stairs, obviously confused. "Who's been having the four teen chicks?"

I skid down the weird looking stairs, cold wind blowing my red hair all over my face. My sister Yang flips and falls beside me.  
What a day, what a day. I can't even cook waffles right, then I suicide bomb our school, and now I'm pretty sure i'm in a different reality.  
Jeeez, I wish I had Crescent Rose with me. I wish I had something, anything.  
All I could see was rows of buildings, menacingly maroon, which is a phrase I've never heard before. I'll never say it again, either.  
"Ruby!" I hear Weiss's beautiful voice squeak. "What now?"  
She was asking me for help. Weiss Schnee, asking me for help. Today isn't so bad after all.  
"Look!" Blake points. Her hand sticks up, and our eyes look at where she's pointing.  
"A gun shop?!" Yang grins. "Now we're talking."  
"Just run across the street, and next to the video game emporium." Blake nods. "Avoid the cars."  
"But we don't have any money! I doubt my credit card works here!" Weiss puffs.  
"We need to try!" I say. Better safe than sorry, that's my motto. Well, one of my mottos anyways. I pick a new one up every week.  
Anyways, across the street. Then we're in the store. There's a fat guy across the glass counter. On the walls are wooden racks with guns. Or, gun-looking things. Doesn't look like guns in our world anyways.  
"Hey…" Weiss murmurs, "Maybe this is a bad idea."  
Blake monotones that she doesn't like the look of the fat counter-guy.  
"Don't get your combat skirts in a twist." Yang gives a silly wink at us. "Let the professional handle this!"  
I watch her puff her out chest and greet the dude with a loud call.  
"Eyyy, my man! Ur…Larry?"  
The fat guy stares up, before his face breaks into a twisted grin.  
"Hey there beautiful. How dy'a know my name?" His lips are moist, and when he speaks, strands of saliva hang like stalactites from the cavern of his mouth.  
Yang nudges the name tag on his shirt pointedly. I can't tell her expression, as I've decided to stay far away from the counter.  
"Look, do you have any guns Larry?" Yang says.  
"Sure, all around you." The dude waves his hands lazily.  
Yang turns around to face us, then back at Larry.  
"Any more?"  
"More?" drawls Larry. "What else do you want, baby?"  
"I dunno, maybe something that transforms into a sword, or wraps around my hand?" She holds up her hands for Larry to see, then wiggles them, just to make sure Larry gets the full picture.  
His face goes slack and confused for a while. I can't believe he called my sister 'baby,' that's a pretty disgusting thing to do.  
Then he smiles, a twisted, long and slimy smile.  
"Sure! Follow me. They're out back."

You follow Lucas out back. The shops are arranged in a way that each block are connected to the same back alley, a long, thin spider's web of passages. They installed lights 5 years back, but the same gang of kids always barrage them with bricks. The town council's been trying to catch them ever since.  
Lucas inherited the store from his first girlfriend, who left for Texas. He insists she'll be coming back.  
His back alley is messy as all hell, and the darkness hides most of the garbage. In the shadows, you can see old NES cartridges, a Super Famicon leaning against more boxes, and a pile of VHS tapes.  
"Here." Lucas has his arms around a large cardboard box, raggy clothes overflowing from it's open ends. "Don't take more than 4 pairs." He warns, giving you a hairy eyeball. He drops the box, and you reluctantly squat.  
"I won't." You promise, observing a shirt, wondering if Yang would fit in it.  
Lucas straightens up and paces around the alley. You ignore him. He sighs and leans against the wall.  
"If you and Jen didn't bone…" Lucas says slowly, as if to emphasise his disbelief, "May I ask who these are for?"  
"Apart from you hitting on Jen? And no, you may not."  
"Pfft, I'm not hitting on Jen."  
"But you find her hot."  
"No, I find her beautiful, and I respect her."  
You scoff and take a bundle of clothes in your arms.  
"You're missing out, Y/N. She's a wonderful lady." Lucas says quietly.  
"A wonderful lady isn't something I need right now. Besides, relationships are a pain." It isn't something you truly believe. You just say it out of spite, to counter Lucas. Maybe not now, but someday you'll meet someone perfect. You and her will laugh and sail through problems other couples can't. You're sure of it.  
As you straighten up, a yell echoes through the tunnels of the back alley.  
"That's a girl." Lucas jolts into action pose.  
"Crap." You already have an idea of who it is.  
Lucas has already bolted ahead, you try to call him back desperately. "Hey, come back! Slow down you stupid idiot!"  
"There's a girl in trouble!" He hollers.  
"In trouble!? What makes you say that? She might just have stubbed her toe!"  
Lucas doesn't hear. He's in the distance now.  
You look at the walls rushing past you as you run. Yells still echo loud and clear. You and Lucas run down the alleyway, take a right, take a left, another left, then the narrow walls open wide into a circular space, large buildings blocking every angle.  
At the corner, there's Larry, an obese, gun tooting friend of Lucas's. Technical friend. They went out to a bar once, where they played Kill, Marry, Fuck with Star Wars characters. Lucas never told you anymore about him.  
Not surprisingly, Larry was advancing on Team RWBY, who had no weapons, and apparently no semblance.  
Yang was pummelling Larry in the gut, ordinary punches, until Larry hooked her in the face.  
You turned exasperated to Lucas, who's frozen, eyes staring at the anime girls.  
"Hey guys." You grunt. "I'm guessing you ran away from my house? Ouch."  
"Only cause you were going to trap us." Yang coughed, sprawled on the floor.  
"I got you clothes." You retort, arms still holding Lucas's donation.  
"I was scared." Ruby says apologetically.  
"Get out of here!" Larry screams. He's squatting slightly; as you can see, he's concealing a slight erection.  
Lucas breaks out. "What the hell Larry? You never told me you had anime girls in your back alley."  
"He doesn't." You say simply. "He's trying to rape them."  
"Emphasis on trying." Weiss replies.  
"Shut up, whore." Larry screams.  
Blake reaches to tear his throat out, but he pulls out a gun and fires it towards the sky. Everyone rattles and falls back.  
"You two! Get out of here!" He screams again, spit flying at you.  
"No." You say flatly.  
"You've got a tiny erection." Lucas notes.  
"Shut up!" Larry screeches.  
His clammy hands slipped all over the handle of his Colt. You sigh in annoyance. Your feet make a loud clack as you walk towards the girls.  
"Come on guys, let's go." You try and beckon them.  
Larry raises the gun and aims it at you. "Scram!"  
Head shaking, you walk to Yang, offering your hand. She looks hesitant, you give a reassuring smile. Ruby twists her head, while behind Lucas is still standing, trying to grasp the situation.

"Er, anyone, what's going on?" He stumbles.

"Come on, don't be afraid." You smile at Team RWBY. "Let's get out of here."

You're painfully aware of the weapon less than a meter away from you. You've stared down the barrel of a toy gun before, imagining it to be the real thing. Imagining what it would be like if it fired, the vibrations in the air, the loud bang followed by deafening ringing in your eyes, your brain blowing apart, senses instantly shutting down. And all in a matter of seconds.

You try to focus instead on Yang's face. They realise they have no weapons, no powers. You can see it in their eyes; the widening iris, the trembling lips.

But there's a shimmer in Yang's eyes. You hope your face is as heroic as possible as your heart throbs.

Larry screams. His fingers slip. The gun shakes, shimmers, and fires. You hear the explosion. The shockwave rides through your being.  
It's almost like a dream, you see the bullet racing towards Yang. You lean forward, in front of her. Then the pain hits.

Lucas is scratching his sideburns nervously.  
He's hunched over, skin flakes floating off his face into the rays of sun.  
"Ow." You monotone. "Shit."  
Your swearing increases in severity and frequency as you hobble into your bedroom. Lucas looks up from his aggressive scratching.  
"Where are they?"  
"What?" Lucas replies softly.  
"Where are they? Team RWBY." You yell. It's so annoying. He's so goddamn annoying. The bit where the bullet grazed your side itches so much, your neck is so infuriatingly warm, why is Lucas such an idiot? Why does he have to be here?  
"They're in your living room, jeez man." Lucas murmurs. He's obviously hurt, but serves him right for butting in someone else's business. This was supposed to be your chance to meet RWBY, why the hell is he here? Now you had to get yourself shot, isn't that just great. Today is such a pile of shit.  
Rwby is out in the living room, spread out across your carpet. Their heads perk up as you and Lucas troop in. Yang has a guilty mask on her face.  
You fall into your armchair, trying to avoid everyone else's gaze.  
Lucas squats and sits cross legged with RWBY on the floor.  
You know they're looking at you, a pack of puppies, worried if you suddenly outburst.  
Your eyes close, trying to focus on the darkness. Then they open, and look around the small apartment.  
A small table is in the corner, accompanied with one lonely chair. Next to it, is a large speaker system for your music. All the moments alone that was shared with those, you think blankly.  
The anime you binged all sort of melded into one big bland show. All the waifus you lusted for, all became the same thing.  
Sooner or later, they replaced the real world.  
"Thank you."  
You opened your eyes. Ruby was looking at you, a little smile playing on her face. "Thanks, Y/N." She repeated.  
You can't help but smile.  
"Yeah. Sorry for running away I guess." Weiss chips in, who was little red.  
They all nod and thank softly. You bite your lower lip and close your eyes again.  
They're afraid, you think. It's my fault I'm flipping out, you think. Then you get an idea.  
Everyone's eyes follow you discreetly as you stand up, heading over to the speakers. Pulling out and plugging your phone into the system, you choose a song.  
Lucas perks up. He looks over to you, a knowing smile on his face. It's the same smile that he had when you played music at his graduation, a smile that went back decades.  
"Is that…" Yang starts.  
"Rocket Man." Lucas finishes, grinning now.  
You have the same expression, sitting on the floor next to Lucas. "Real music." You nod. "From our world."  
"You've always had good taste, Y/N." Lucas sways to the rhythm.  
For a while, all 6 of you sit, listening.  
Mars ain't the kind of place to raise your kids~  
In fact its cold as hell~  
And theres no one there to raise them~  
If you did~  
And all the science, I don't understand~  
Rocket Mannn~  
"This is pretty good." Blake says, smiling. "May I see your scroll?"  
She takes your phone and swipes through your album. She twists her neck, intrigued by a song. "Who's the man lying down? With a tiger….tiger? On his lap?"  
"Play it." Lucas laughs.  
She plays Thriller, and your mood lifts. You start to sing, instinctively.  
"They're out to get you, as demons close in on every side~!"  
"They will possess you, unless you change that number on your dial!" Lucas chips in.  
Weiss gives a silly little laugh at the craziness of it all, and for a while, all the tension falls away.  
The song ends with a cackle, and as Ruby leaps up, Yang puts her arm on your shoulder. Your insides jump and freeze.  
"Hey." She says. Her eyes are a brilliant purple, dancing with happy fire. Her hands are soft but firm, and her mouth falls into an easy smile. "Thanks for saving my life. Are you hurt?"  
"No. No, not at all." You reply, laughing too.  
As Ruby picks Stupid Cupid, you can't remember feeling any better, ever. 


End file.
